StonewallAGAIN was There

Since 2010, the awesome Park Ridge library hosted the Park Ridge Community Fair. The big city organizations were always there. For a first time, a LGBT organization was there this year.

After I got permissions from the Fair organizer and our original visionarian, Mike Lackovich, I represented StonewallAGAIN as Bisexual liaison and cofounder at Park Ridge Community Fair 2014. The reactions were all different. One man of a certain age did nothing that surprised me....

The man hovered and carefully approached our table. I greeted him and introduced StonewallAGAIN. He replied from out of a 1968 era, "The down fall of the white race is gays and lesbians. They need to find a cure for them." I replied from our 2014 table, "Since we can't find a cure for heterosexuals... Then we need to live and let live." He then later "reexplained" his earlier babble with erasing any assumed "cure" mention.

For that alone, I was grateful that I was there at all.

Celebrating our Cofounders

Our original visionarian and patriarch, Mike Lackovich helped our Bisexual liaison, Br. Michael C. Oboza (ret) prepare to represent StonewallAGAIN at Park Ridge's Community Fair 2014 by getting him our banner, business cards and fliers. The fliers surprised Oboza, because Lackovich promoted Oboza to Cofounder status.

Even though, Lackovich will always be the patriarch. Nevertheless, Oboza will be our matriarch, respectfully.

Original Can of Worms

As he put all the flags away, the list grows... Heterophobia, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia... And now Ornithorhynchusphobia.

After our own Bisexual liaison, Br. Michael C. Oboza (ret) wrote up a list of phobias for StonewallAGAIN's new outreach goals, he was grateful to have a Spiritual Awakening of awareness from a rare conversation he had with Dustin, a dear friend of his.

Oboza first mentioned, "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it might be a rabbit." Then Dustin explains, "That reminds me of an animal that is differrent than we assume it to be with a bill of a duck and body of a beaver.... A platypus." Oboza shared that he often uses his comparison of the duck and rabbit regarding bisexuals. But to become more inclusive, Dustin suggested to open the original can of worms and include the "other" mammal which is the non-identified adult consentual sexual orientation.

Biphobia Again

Our own Bisexual liaison, Br. Michael C. Oboza (ret) was calling The Rockford Blade, an Adult Sex phone line when he talked with a man who does not identify; not gay, bisexual, nor straight. Talking with him was a "fresh breath of air." The man reclaimed his own individual truth which reminded Oboza that some people do not identify. And Non-identified people exist! They are real, open minded and nonjudgmental.... Then it happened!

An open, out gay latino was online. The "kissy smoochy" gay guy shared, "I have something to ask you guys. I am gay and want to marry a man one day. And I don't believe those Bisexual people. Bisexuals are disgusting, fake and untrustworthy." As he continued looking for guys to reply, Oboza left him messages.

"I stand up against homophobia and I am bisexual... And you may need to re-record your Biphobic ad by simply sharing that your cup of tea is gay and gay only." Oboza said, continued in a second message, "And I'd be careful, because even karma goes both ways." After waiting after an hour before he bailed on the c.b. of the phone line, Oboza pushed a key, so the Biphobic message was idenified as spam to help the phone line to block the gay guy from spreading anymore Biphobia to any future callers.

Even though, the phone line is "All male... All gay." Never the less, it is not at all "All male... All gay biphobia."

It Was 1972

The name is Stephen Donaldson. First, he founded an original college student organization for gay people called Student Homophile League in 1967. After Donaldson came out bisexual, he began to experience biphobia from some gay students and teachers that he helped with organization that he found. Second, he later left to join the military. There he was given a dishonarable discharge for "homosexuality." Once again, he experienced Bisexual Erasure for being assumed gay.

The good news is that he did not give up completely in the face of discrimination. He found an open minded group called Community of Friends on Bisexuality, a Quaker group. He shared his original vision in hopes to confront future biphobia. Together, Donaldson and the Quaker group created the Ithaca Statement on Bisexuality. It appeared in the Advocate, a gay magazine.

For some, it was visibility.... For others, it was Bisexual conscienceness.... For us all, it was June 1972.

Br. Michael's Winter Book Club

One of the few playful legendary landmark Bisexual studies was done by a woman. In 1995, Marjorie Garber, an English professor wrote a book, Vice Versa which explains in simple terms about transparent and consistent Bisexual research of the genuine existence of Bisexual pop culture and history. Beyond race, career and confronting Bisexual Erasure over countless decades, the over 500 pages are "very empowering to newly out bisexuals and our allies," said our Bisexual liaison, Br. Michael C. Oboza (ret.)  There are few of many interesting reads in the book that even fascinated Oboza, one of the few Bisexual leaders in Chicago's third wave of Bisexual community and activism from 2007, along with Noel Spain and Adrienne Williams.

First, Oboza read, "the early 19'th century poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge could write of "the very old tradition of the homo androgynus- that is, that the original man was bisexual." Second, "Bisexual is preferred a 19'th century term, before that "the 17'th century term was bisexed, bisexous for both sexes." Lastly, before Oboza was born, "in 1974, television interviewer, Barbara Walters's weeklong discussion of bisexuality on a program aptly called "Not for Women Only." And 1975, there appeared books like Bisexual Living." There are also other Bisexual books that explain bisexual is not somewhere between homosexual and heterosexual, "a grey area," but, bisexual extends beyond that with countless individual experiences that have almost been forgotten.

Five Years Ago Again

The March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian equality was the first to include Bi for Bisexual in 2009. Many earlier Bisexual pioneers helped make that happen including Loraine Hutchins. That day was historical in itself. Our very own Bi liaison, Br. Michael C. Oboza (ret) was unable to go, because he was confronting Bisexual Erasure, a manifestation of Biphobia in Chicago at that time.

In 2009, Oboza wrote an open letter to Gay Chicago Magazine. After it appeared there. It later appeared in an article entitled, "Photos of the Bi Community at the National Equality March," written by Bisexual author and activist, Mike Szymanski.

Five years ago, again, Oboza later met Szymanski in person to say thank you.

Oboza's letter reads, "There happens to still be discrimination within our Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender community. For years, the same people who have gotten away with using the "B" not for equality representation, but a credit to fill a quota still use such tactics. Also, there are people who still degrade bisexual people as going through a phase. As if to judge one of the apostles (who) are going through a gospel phase. In other words, between the Dyke March, Matthew Shepherd March and Transgender Day of Remembrance, Bisexual people have been forgotten. We have lessened August Provost and Bill Clayton as we have remembered more of Matthew Shepard, Brandon Teena and others. Life has many more aspects than merely a rainbow. The Bisexual community has their own flag, because their voices have finally been heard and respected. Any further bias from within our community will not be tolerated."